(813)928-2968

BrendaFricks.com

How to Prepare Your Home for Sale

A first impression counts just as much with real estate as it does with people. The role that psychology plays in selling home is vastly undervalued by homeowners. Buyers form an immediate opinion of a home based upon their overall perception of its quality, durability and livability. While you must work within the basic attributes of your home, there are a variety of tactics you can use to make the home more appealing to buyers. Some of these tactics are subtle, such as placing flowers in particular locations or scenting the air appealing fragrances, while others are more obvious, such as painting the walls or tidying up the landscaping. A good listing agent can provide a lot of excellent advice on preparing a home for sale, and the right enhancements can result in a quicker sale at a higher price.

Hire a Home Stager

Many homeowners hire professional home stagers to prepare the home for sale. Staging a home has measurable effects on the final sales price and is often well worth the cost. Stagers will bring in new furniture, remove the clutter from areas like kitchens and bathrooms, hang paintings and thoroughly clean the home from top to bottom. Staging is especially useful for a new home, since it provides potential buyers with a vision of what living there would be like. Buyers are notoriously unable to imagine where a couch or a bed might go, and new-home staging often leads to a far quicker sale.

Conduct a Pre-emptive Home Inspection

Since buyers will almost certainly be conducting a home inspection, it's a good idea to hire a professional home inspector yourself to find out whether there are any issues prior to listing the home. If the water heater is 20 years old, replacing it will demonstrate to the buyer that you've taken care to address issues that might otherwise lead to a lower sale price. Replacing carpets, painting walls, replacing plumbing fixtures and installing new lighting fixtures are all relatively inexpensive ways to spruce up a home and enhance the buyer's visual and emotional perception of the home.

Create Curb Appeal

Paying attention to the property's exterior is another important tactic in preparing your home for sale. Effective landscaping can have a huge impact on a buyer's perception of a home, since it is the first thing they see as they approach the property. Hire a landscaper to plant flowers and shrubs and to reseed any dead or brown areas in the lawn. Rake leaves, remove lawn ornaments, toys, or other personal effects and generally keep the area in front of the home clear of debris. If you live in a wintry environment, make sure that all sidewalks and pathways are clear of ice and snow.

For more tips and tricks on getting a home ready for sale, contact the real estate experts at BrendaFricks.com.